UK Mortgage Payment Protection Insurance Doesn't Have To Be A "Rip-Off"

UK mortgage payment protection insurance has been on the receiving end of some negative publicity recently due to some consumers having been mis-sold this cover. However, despite this, if you buy from a reputable source, it is a very worthwhile product to have in your corner if you should find yourself out of work after suffering from an accident, illness or if you should become unemployed.

Although the product has been given a bad name it is important to remember that it isn't actually the policy itself which is to blame but the poor selling techniques that have been used at the time the product is taken out. Policies were being sold at the time of taking out the mortgage to those who couldn't possibly hope to claim against them including those who were self-employed or only in part time work. Other ineligible customers included those of retirement age and suffering from an illness at the time of taking out the cover.

Providing you have ensured that the product is suitable for your needs then UK mortgage payment protection insurance can start to give you an income which makes sure that you can continue meeting your mortgage each month and so not struggle having to find the money. It would begin to give you a tax free income after a defined period of time which can be between the 31st and 90th day of being out of work depending on the provider. The policy would then continue for up to 12 months and with some policies for up to 24 months. It is essential that you go with a standalone specialist provider for the cover as opposed to taking it out alongside the mortgage from the high street lender. The standalone provider will give you access to all the information needed for you to make sure that a policy is suitable for your needs.

Problems began for the sector when the Citizens Advice lodged a super complaint to the Office of Fair Trading in 2005. The Financial Services Authority then began an investigation into the sector and several major high street names received fines for mis-selling payment protection insurance products. Mis-selling ranged from not mentioning the exclusions in a policy, selling cover that the consumer couldn't possible hope to claim against and charging premiums that were sky high for the cover.

While some changes for the better have already been made the most recent review by the Financial Services Authority has revealed that 2 out of 3 of the highlighted problems still needed working on and some firms still hadn't improved their selling techniques enough. A change for the better should be seen in March 2008 with the introduction of comparison tables which will highlight the exclusions, the total cost of the cover and will allow the consumer to determine from a series of questions which product is the best for their needs before buying.

In summary, UK mortgage payment protection insurance is a truly invaluable policy to have - but you have to buy it wisely.

About the Author

Simon Burgess is Managing Director of the award-winning British Insurance, a specialist provider of uk mortgage payment protection insurance, loan protection insurance and income protection insurance.